Chapter 143: Mission
Having returned to the city of mercenaries, Hui Yue and the entourage went to the Mercenary Guild where they once more took over one of the smaller courtyards.
While Hui Yue remembered that they would have to go visit Zhou Long soon he tried to push it as far back as possible, refusing to go anywhere before he finished refining the items he got, along with drying the meat.
The main reason why Hui Yue did not go yet was because he was as uncertain about Zhou Long as ever. During the battle, it was obvious that the man could have finished it earlier, yet he allowed for the beast to thrash around for quite a while and he even left the majority of the work to Hui Yue, not to mention him letting the beast kill the formation specialists and Little Poppy.
What the man wished to accomplish by bringing Hui Yue along, the white-haired boy had no idea, nor did he know whether or not the man gained what he wanted leaving him feeling unsettled.
On one hand, Hui Yue wished to stay far away from the man. It was obvious that he was planning something..
On the other hand, Zhou Long was a free ticket to the next tunnel. He was obviously from the Dragon Corps’ headquarters, and if they were to follow him gaining access through the tunnels would be an easy feat.
In the end, Hui Yue was unable to decide what to do, but eventually he realized there was no harm in listening to the task Zhou Long was holding for him. With a determined expression on his face, Hui Yue packed away all the Horned Snake scales and bones which were laying by his side, along with all the refined materials, before he made his way towards the Dragon Corps’ office. The place where Zhou Long said he would be waiting for him.
Moving through town, Hui Yue stopped wearing his cloak, but even still lots of eyes were drawn in his direction. Some were staring at him due to his peculiar appearance, while others were staring at him in awe remembering his performance during the tournament. Although Hui Yue did not win first place he had long since been recognized as one of the leading cultivators within the city.
Hui Yue started to understand more about cultivation, and he also understood exactly why Lan Feng chose this place to be his training ground.
Although King ranked experts existed in the Demon Dwelling Cave, there were very few whereas the majority were Master and Grandmaster ranked.
Having asked around, Hui Yue was told the next cave was mainly Grandmasters with the peak experts there being King ranked.
Two caves away the average was Duke ranked experts while the final caves all had an average of King ranked experts or above.
This was of course talking about the major caves, between them were smaller caves, caves the size of Cave’s End. These caves were fiefdoms, and belonged to the nobility living in the final few caves.
Having learned this, Hui Yue knew that Zhou Long belonged to the main caves, but for some reason he was in this small cave with pitiful cultivators.
While thinking about the various caves, Hui Yue suddenly found himself in front of the main office for the Dragon Corps and with a sigh he pushed the door open and stepped in, looking around only to find everything deserted.
Looking around the building, Hui Yue found that the main office was nothing like he expected. For some reason he expected something similar to that of a police-station in his old world, but this was clearly a mansion built for the Dragon Corps to reside within whenever they were in the City.
“Hello?” Hui Yue called while looking around but no one answered him. Wondering whether or not he should stay within the main hall or leave the house, Hui Yue was at a loss about what to do. Yet before he had the time to make a decision, the front door opened up and Zhou Long appeared in the doorway with a smile like usual.
“Yue, my good friend!” He exclaimed with exaggerated arm gestures, before he placed one of his arms around Hui Yue’s shoulder and firmly lead him up the stairs through various corridors before they arrived at a large room.
Being led inside, Hui Yue’s mouth was agape as he saw elaborate carvings of azure dragons all around. The four columns in the room were carved into azure dragons, the windows had mosaics depicting the dragons and azure dragon figurines were placed all around the room.
Although Hui Yue called it a room it was in fact three rooms adjourned to each other. One room contained a luxurious bed, while another was a washroom, and finally the room in which Hui Yue was standing was a office.
The office contained a large table made from heavywood, along with two chairs.
Gesturing for Hui Yue to sit down, Zhou Long went behind the table and sat down. Sitting still for a short while, Zhou Long was looking at Hui Yue in a peculiar way. A way which Hui Yue could not quite describe and the whole time the creepy smile was still present on Zhou Long’s face. A smile which was a little to friendly.
“I have to stay here in this cave for half a year,” Zhou Long started, as he looked through the various memory stones and papers which were spread out on the table. “However I have some information I need to deliver to the main office,” He continued, as he picked up three memory stones and one parcel.
“These items need to get to the capital, but since I am unable to leave I need to rely on others to take it for me.” Zhou Long continued, his voice slightly complaining about the task.
Had it been anyone other than Hui Yue who was within the room right now, they would have stopped him right there. If It was true that Zhou Long had to stay within the cave for half a year, then if he were to rush back after that half year he would easily be able to reach the final cave before Hui Yue and his entourage could. .
The fact that Hui Yue did not point this flaw out strengthened Zhou Long’s impression of Hui Yue being connected to the Frozen General. The fact that he did not know showed that he was not from the underground world.
Hui Yue on the other hand felt lucky. The fact that they were asked to carry something to the final cave would give them access through every tunnel on the way, and he felt extra assured the moment he heard that Zhou Long had no intention of following them on the way. That he had to stay behind for half a year.
No matter how Hui Yue thought about it, it was beneficial for them and with a nod of his head he accepted the task.
“Great!” Zhou Long said with an excited and happy expression on his face, “Pass me your mercenary emblem.” He continued, and Hui Yue withdrew the golden emblem from within his memory stone, wondering what exactly was going to happen.
With curious eyes, Hui Yue noticed how Zhou Long placed the emblem against his forehead and after a flash of blue light, Zhou Long gave it back.
Seeing Hui Yue’s confused expression Zhou Long decided to explain, “Don’t let the gold cover fool you.” He laughed, “This is a memory stone just like every other emblem. What I just placed within the stone was the specifics about your mission. That it is a mission on behalf of the Dragon Corps and that it is considered an A rank mission. I have upgraded you to B rank and also embedded a picture of you as the leader.”
Hui Yue was taken aback from what he heard and he narrowed his eyes as the words made no sense to him.
“What’s B rank?” He asked curiously.
“B rank means that you have the right to request help in every town, and they have to obey you. The only ones above you are the leaders of each cave along with the leading officers and elders of the Dragon Corps, and if they were to go against you they would need a very good reason.”
Hearing that he had been given so much authority, Hui Yue gulped slightly. Everything that he had wished for was right here within his reach, but it also proved that Zhou Long was no ordinary member of the Dragon Corps. To be able to promote one to such a rank he had to be some important.
Although Hui Yue was still somewhat skeptical about Zhou Long’s intentions, he was grateful for the promotion and the mission was perfect for what he had in mind. Showing a genuine smile, Hui Yue nodded in approval.
“We will leave town in a few days,” Hui Yue said to Zhou Long, feeling that he should inform him about their plans, and he thanked the older man then got ready to leave.
Seeing that Hui Yue wanted to leave, Zhou Long did nothing to try and stop him. He was not stupid and was perfectly well aware that Hui Yue did not trust him. Let alone trust, Hui Yue was constantly on the guard when it came to Zhou Long, and the man knew it.
He had from the very start shown his favouritism in a way to make Hui Yue notice and even now, he would do everything he could to show the younger boy just how much he approved of him. Although it was a risky gamble, it was a way to ensure that Hui Yue would remember him later on, and if Hui Yue remembered him as someone who helped him, then Zhou Long had succeeded. Anyone who was beneficial to the Frozen General was rewarded greatly.
Sighing deeply, Zhou Long leaned backwards as he looked at the now empty office. A smile appearing on his face as he picked up another set of memory stones. Placing one after another on his forehead, Zhou Long started picking out random groups of mercenaries as his hand was resting on a poster that said Hui Yue was a wanted man and his companions were worth more dead than alive.
Completely unaware of what Zhou Long was doing, Hui Yue was whistling happily on his way back to the courtyard, excitement evident on his handsome and youthful face.
Now that he obtained the mission from Zhou Long, they no longer needed to worry about how they could get from one place to another. All the worries Hui Yue had had just now vanished.
Although he was still uncertain about Zhou Long, Hui Yue knew that soon they would escape his grasp and with the privileges he was given how could they not have an easy road ahead of them?
Whistling happily, Hui Yue could not wait to share the good news with his friends. He picked up his pace and ran through town as fast as possible, impatient to see his friends.
